1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fishing and, particularly fishing from a boat having fishing rods mounted in elevated holders.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Fishing is a very popular activity around the world, both commercially and for pleasure. Much of the fishing in large bodies of fresh or salt water is conducted from boats.
Many boats have an elevated second deck above a tourist deck and typically several fishing rods are provided for fisherman on the tourist deck. The elevated deck typically terminates in opposite edges spaced inboard above the gunnels of the lower deck, as well as a rear edge spaced forward of the stern. In effort to minimize clutter and maintain organization of the fishermen's rods, holders, sometimes referred to “Rocket Launchers” may be mounted to the aft end or sides of the upper deck. These holders are normally in the form of open top, upwardly opening and outwardly angled tubular devices that sometimes include upwardly opening slots in the walls thereof for receipt of a mounting stem of a reel on the fishing rod.
When a promising fishing site is approached, the ship's captain or deck hands may notify the fishermen of the upcoming activity and there is then oftentimes a flurry of activity seeking to quickly retrieve the fishing rods in order to participate in the early casts into a school of fish. This often results in excited activity by the fishermen and/or deck hands which sometimes results in the fishermen or deckhands climbing up on the gunnels of the lower deck and reaching up and inboard endeavoring to retrieve the fishing rod(s) from the respective holders. This can place the full load of the weight of the rod on the outreached arm, oftentimes loading the back unevenly and subjecting the deckhand to lower back injury.
Also, on many occasions the gunnels of the boat are damp or wet from waves or sea moisture thus creating a dangerous condition for deckhands crawling up on the gunnels to retrieve the fishing rods, particularly in uneven seas. It has long been recognized that there are typically no tools onboard for retrieval of the fishing rods thus inviting the deckhand to, in reaching upwardly and inboard for the rods to sometimes unevenly load his or her back thus, causing back injuries and/or slipping or stumbling from the retrieval position thus resulting in injuries, oftentimes resulting in serious pain and, all too often, loss of work time.
In the past, many different devices have been proposed for mounting fishing rods for different purposes, particularly for holding a rod on a stake during the fishing activity for quick retrieval in the event of a unsuspecting fish takes the bait.
Devices of this type are shown in a number of different prior art patents, including U.S. Pat. No. 2,309,350 to Nasko, U.S. Pat. No. 2,311,823 to Gaskill, U.S. Pat. No. 2,506,912 to Augestine, U.S. Pat. No. 2,523,356 to Cherry, UK Patent Publication No. 227635 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,293,305 to Oldham. While such devices provide convenient cradles or the like to support a rod while fishing, none are constructed to engage an elevated, upwardly and outwardly angled fishing rod for reliable retrieval from an overhead location.
One device proposed seeking to solve the problem includes an elongated telescopical rod including a L-shaped or F-shaped cleat for engaging under a stem of a spinning reel and including at the distal end a loose spiral spring which, upon rotation of the rod, is intended to engage the body of the fishing rod to facilitate retrieval. A device of this type is shown in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2011/02331612 to Gaar. Such a device, while offering some utility, suffers the shortcoming that the use and operation would require unusual dexterity and eyesight for a deckhand to quickly engage the device, particularly under inclement conditions and rocking of a boat in stormy seas.